SINGAPORE, Oct 22 — Visitors will not be allowed at hospital wards and residential care homes for another month to protect healthcare capacity and vulnerable seniors during a period when Covid-19 community cases are on the rise, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Thursday (Oct 21).

The ministry had earlier announced in September that there would be no visitors to hospitals until Oct 23, as well as to residential care homes till Oct 24. This has been extended to Nov 21. 

These measures will also apply to all public acute hospitals, community hospitals and private hospitals.

MOH said that the rise in Covid-19 cases in the community over the past two weeks has increased Covid-19 admissions to the hospitals, and that there were also several new Covid-19 clusters amongst patients and residents in hospitals and residential care homes.

In addition to extending the ban on visitors, booster vaccination jabs have been ramped up for healthcare workers and seniors, including those residing in residential care homes, to mitigate the risk of large outbreaks in these settings, said MOH.

The ministry added that to ensure that patients and residents remain connected with their loved ones, the hospitals and residential care homes will continue to support alternative methods of communication such as through telephone or video calls.

Visitors will also continue to be allowed for some patient groups on a case-by-case basis, as assessed by the hospital. They include: